Strictly Come Dancing has returned with new presenters Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe, while the BBC has revealed 15 celebrity-professional pairings for the 2026 series.
What changed this year?
BBC News reported that the show entered its 24th series with the new presenting trio replacing Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. The launch also used three specially choreographed group dances to reveal the couples, bringing more dancing into the opening format.
The BBC said the launch averaged 5.3 million viewers with a 49.2% overnight share, 7% higher than the previous year’s launch. The overnight figure does not include all later BBC iPlayer viewing.
Celebrity and professional pairings
The BBC’s official list includes Dani Dyer with Nikita Kuzmin, Delta Goodrem with Kai Widdrington, Lacey Turner with Vito Coppola, Dame Sarah Storey with Julian Caillon and Shaun Wright-Phillips with Alexis Warr. Five new professionals also joined the 2026 cast.
For more entertainment coverage, read NewesInfo’s Heated Rivalry update and our sports audience report.
Sources: BBC News Strictly report · BBC Media Centre pairings · BBC first-look coverage